Protecting America’s Consumers: The Shady Industry Front Group and its Untrustworthy Leadership

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Protect America’s Consumers is an “astroturf group,” or a group that bills itself as a grassroots organization but does not have any members. In reality, it’s funded by unknown sources and is aligned with shady Koch Brothers-connected characters all the way down the chain. The only people publicly affiliated with the group once worked with organizations that have been caught faking grassroots activity, even forging letters to Congress. It also appears that Protect America’s Consumers hired Lincoln Strategy Group to run its astroturf operation. Lincoln Strategy Group is one of the most notorious voter fraud organizations in the country – and has been caught numerous times in multiple states blatantly violating voter registration laws

Protect America’s Consumers Is Registered to a Law Firm That Specializes in Shady, Untraceable Dark Money Groups and Has Ties to the Koch Brothers

Protect America’s Consumers Inc. Is Registered in Virginia to North Rock Reports LLC…

…Who Is a Partner at the Law Firm of Holtzman, Vogel, Josefiak, Torchinsky and a Former Bush Campaign Counsel and Bush Administration Department of Justice Official

Jason Torchinsky Is a Partner at the Law Firm Holtzman, Vogel, Josefiak, Torchinsky PLLC. “Jason Torchinsky is a partner at Holtzman Vogel Josefiak Torchinsky PLLC, specializing in campaign finance, election law, lobbying disclosure and issue advocacy groups. Politico recently named Jason one of the “50 Politicos to Watch,” and in 2007, Campaigns and Elections Magazine named Jason a “Rising Star of Politics.” … Prior to joining the firm, Jason was Counsel to the Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division at the United States Department of Justice. During the 2004 election cycle, Jason served as Deputy General Counsel to Bush-Cheney ’04 and Deputy General Counsel to the 2005 Presidential Inaugural Committee. He holds a B.A. in Government and Public Policy from the College of William and Mary and a J.D. from the College of William and Mary School of Law. He is a member of the Virginia Bar, the District of Columbia Bar, the Republican National Lawyers Association and the Federalist Society. [Jason Torchinsky Bio, hvjt.law]

Torchinsky Worked at The DOJ in The Bush Administration and Was Counsel to The Bush-Cheney Reelection Campaign. “Do I believe strongly in the First Amendment? Yes. But we do not push the envelope,” said Torchinsky, who worked in the Justice Department under President George W. Bush and was counsel to the 2004 re-election campaign. “Do we have clients who once in a while want to step out and do something more activist? Yes.” [Bloomberg, 12/5/12]

The Law Firm Holtzman, Vogel, Josefiak, Torchinsky Specialize in Untraceable Interest Groups for Conservative Causes That Have Been Criticized as a “Campaign Money Laundering” Scheme

The Law Firm Holtzman, Vogel, Josefiak, Torchinsky “Specializes in Untraceable Pressure Groups for Conservative Causes” And Their Clients Include Karl Rove, Marco Rubio, And The NRCC. “The organization still won’t say who’s behind it. The address on its Virginia incorporation record matches the law firm Holtzman Vogel Josefiak Torchinsky, which specializes in untraceable pressure groups for conservative causes and whose clients include Karl Rove’s American Crossroads, Sen. Marco Rubio’s presidential campaign and the National Republican Congressional Committee. The use of an expensive law firm to set up an anonymous entity suggests this is no small effort.” [Politico, 1/7/16]

The Firm Has Emerged as a “Nexus of Republican Secret Money and Power” By Specializing “In Advising Organizations That Want to Participate in The Electoral Process Without Disclosing Who’s Paying Their Bills.” “About 50 miles west of Washington, in a newly developed zone between the roadside farm stands and the shops that line the Victorian Main Street of tiny Warrenton, Virginia, sits a brick office building that’s emerged as a nexus of Republican secret money and power. The building houses the law firm of Holtzman Vogel Josefiak PLLC, a boutique outfit that specializes in advising organizations that want to participate in the electoral process without disclosing who’s paying their bills.” [Bloomberg, 12/5/12]

The Firm Is Tied to More Than $250 Million in Spending from Non-Party Groups That Attempted to Influence The 2012 Election, Including A Group That California Election Officials Accused of a “Campaign Money Laundering” Scheme. “The firm is tied to non-party groups, including super-political action committees, that spent more than $250 million in an effort to influence the 2012 election. That’s more than a quarter of the total by independent organizations, according to an estimate by the Center for Responsive Politics, a nonpartisan Washington-based group that tracks political spending. Lawyers at Holtzman Vogel have signed off on corporate filings, legal briefs and Internal Revenue Service documents for some of the prominent players, including American Crossroads, and the stealthiest ones, such as the Center to Protect Patient Rights, which California election officials accused last month of being part of a “campaign money laundering” scheme.” [Bloomberg, 12/5/12]

Torchinsky Represented the Koch Brothers Funded Organization Americans for Prosperity. “Americans for Prosperity, the political nonprofit founded and partially funded by billionaires Charles and David Koch, fought off similar complaints with the help of Torchinsky. AFP spent $38.5 million on advertising in support of Republican candidates in 2012, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. The group also deployed a ground operation that sought to register Republican voters and get out the vote on Election Day.” [Bloomberg, 12/5/12]

Protect America’s Consumers Shares an Address with a Lawyer Who Has Sponsored Several Koch-Tied or Koch-Funded Groups. “The website doesn’t have any information about the group’s sponsors, because “we don’t want this to be seen as a partisan issue,” said spokesman Steve Gates. But the organization’s Warrenton, Va., address matches that of a lawyer who has registered several Koch-linked or -funded groups, such as Americans for Responsible Leadership and American Future Fund. [Politico, 1/4/16]

Protect America’s Consumers CEO Steve Gates Was Spokesperson for a Group That Hired Lincoln Strategy Group to Run Its Astroturf Operation

Protect America’s Consumers’ CEO Is Steve Gates, Who Worked with The American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity When “It Was Caught Feigning a Grass-Roots Campaign, Including Sending Forged Letter to Congressional Offices.” “The only person who has been identified with the group, spokesman Steve Gates, worked for the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity while it was caught feigning a grass-roots campaign, including sending forged letters to congressional offices. Gates didn’t respond to requests for comment.” [Politico, 1/7/16]

The ACCCE “Subcontracted Its Astroturf Operations to Lincoln Strategy Group, A GOP-Tied Firm Notorious for Voter Fraud.” “The new project will use 225,000 volunteers dubbed “America’s Power Army.” They will visit town hall meetings, fairs and other functions attended by members of Congress and ask misleading questions about energy policy. Think Progress has discovered that ACCCE has subcontracted its astroturf operations to the Lincoln Strategy Group, a GOP-tied firm notorious for voter fraud. The LinkedIn profile for Lincoln Strategies staffer Courtney Forrester reveals that her employer is engaged in a massive effort to recruit supporters on behalf of the coal industry. Steve Gates, communications director for ACCCE, told Think Progress that Lincoln Strategy Group ran their grassroots campaign last year as well.” [Think Progress, 8/7/09]

Lincoln Strategy Group Is One of the Most Notorious Voter Fraud Organizations in the Country – and Has Been Caught Numerous Times in Multiple States Blatantly Violating Voter Registration Laws

Think Progress: Lincoln Strategies Is “One of Most Notorious Voter Fraud Organizations in The Country.” “The new firm managing the “grassroots” campaign for the coal industry has a history that distinguishes it as being one of the most notorious voter fraud organizations in the country:” [Think Progress, 8/7/09]

In 2012, Lincoln Strategy Group Was Accused of Submitting Fraudulent Voter-Registration Forms to Florida Counties On Behalf of The RNC. “Nathan Sproul and his Tempe-based voter-registration company, Lincoln Strategy Group, formerly known as Strategic Allied Consulting, is accused of submitting possible fraudulent voter-registration forms to Florida counties. Keith Kameg, spokesman for Florida’s Department of Law Enforcement, declines to specify how many counties, saying the case is an active criminal investigation that “precludes us from providing further information.” Sproul was working on behalf of the Republican National Committee to register voters to help presidential candidate Mitt Romney in a key battleground state before the committee fired Sproul. The Republican Party of Florida paid Sproul’s firm more than $1.3million. Sproul says his employees are trained on campaign-finance laws, and he says his company has turned in employees who break the law.” [Arizona Republic, 12/28/12]

Complaints Surfaced in 10 Florida Counties of Voter Registration Fraud by Lincoln Strategy Group Including Similar Signatures, False Addresses, And Names of Dead People; Similar Claims Also Arose Against Lincoln Strategy Group in Nevada and Colorado. “The tables have turned, however, and Republicans are now playing defense over the role of a well-paid operative, Nathan Sproul, in a voter registration scandal that emerged in Florida and has spread to other states. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement said it was reviewing ”numerous” claims involving a company that Mr. Sproul runs to determine if a criminal investigation is warranted. Complaints have surfaced in 10 Florida counties, among them allegations that registrations had similar signatures or false addresses, or were filed under the names of dead people. In other cases, party affiliations appeared to have been changed. In recent days, similar claims against Mr. Sproul have arisen in Nevada and Colorado.” [New York Times, 10/5/12]

Voter Registration Fraud Accusations Against Sproul and Lincoln Strategy Group “Seem to Fit a Pattern” And in Nevada a Woman Was Told by an Employee of Lincoln Strategy Group to Rip Up a Registration Where She Registered Democrat and Fill Out Another Where She Registered Independent. “Susan Bucher, the superintendent of elections in Palm Beach County, Fla., said that about 100 questionable voter registrations had been flagged there. Of those, more than half involved changing a voter’s party affiliation to Republican or independent. Ms. Bucher said that the revised registrations gave her ”the feeling that the person completing the application had not come in contact with the voter,” because they failed to include proper identifying information, like the last four digits of the voter’s Social Security number. The voter registration fraud allegations against Mr. Sproul’s companies seem to fit a pattern. In Nevada, a complaint filed last month with the secretary of state’s office alleged that a woman, Cathy Sue Yancey, was told to tear up a form in which she registered as a Democrat and fill out another one without marking her party affiliation. The complaint was filed by another woman who said she witnessed the event outside an unemployment office in Henderson, Nev., on Sept. 13. That woman, Gina Greisen, said she and a group of friends had been approached by a man who told them that they needed to update their voter registration. ”He talked about voter fraud and mentioned Acorn and illegals voting,” Ms. Greisen said. The worker then approached Ms. Yancey. ”He was sure a Republican, because he was totally against Obama,” said Ms. Yancey, who was reached by phone and verified Ms. Greisen’s account. ”I’m a Democrat. I’m certainly voting for Obama.” The election forms were traced to a Sproul operation.” [New York Times, 10/5/12]

In 2012, The RNC and All State Republican Parties Terminated Their Contract with Lincoln Strategy Group (DBA Strategic Allied Consulting) After The Voter Fraud Allegations and Reince Preibus Stated “There Is No Tolerance for Them at All.” “The Republican Party of Wisconsin contracted with Sproul’s Strategic Allied Consulting and had its workers in the state for about a week, according to Nathan Conrad, a spokesman for the Wisconsin party. Conrad said the contract was terminated last month when the problems in Florida emerged. The Republican National Committee and other state parties also terminated their contracts at the time. “There is no tolerance for them at all,” said Reince Priebus, the RNC’s chairman. Sproul has operated companies under a number of names, including Sproul & Associates, Lincoln Strategy Group and Strategic Allied Consulting, according to The New York Times. [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 10/14/12]

Spoul’s Firm Was Accused of Throwing Out Democratic Registrations in Nevada and Oregon in 2004. “Sproul told the Times he formed Strategic Allied Consulting at the request of the RNC for publicity’s sake, given past negative media coverage of Lincoln stemming from past allegations going back to 2004, when employees in Nevada and Oregon signed up Democrats but threw out their forms instead of turning them in.” [Fox 31 (Denver), 9/28/12]

In 2004, Sproul’s Company Was Accused of Only Registering Republicans in Multiple States and A Worker In Las Vegas Said He Watched a Supervisor Tear Up Democratic Registrations. “In 2004, a company he started was paid millions by Republicans to register voters. Employees in several states alleged they were told to register only Republicans. A worker in Las Vegas said he watched a supervisor tear up Democratic registrations. A Justice Department investigation did not lead to any charges, Sproul said.” [LA Times, 9/28/12]

The Oregon Department of Justice Investigated Spoul Companies for Voter Fraud in 2004.“Similar allegations prompted an investigation by the Oregon Department of Justice in 2004.” [New York Times, 10/5/12]

A Woman Told Investigators That She Was Paid by Sproul’s Consulting Firm Only When She Registered Republicans; The Claims Were Also Investigated by The Portland Office of The FBI. “The woman told investigators that she was paid only when she registered Republicans or those who said they would vote for President George W. Bush. The Oregon inquiry focused on more than 100 fraud complaints, many pointing to operations run by Mr. Sproul, but did not result in any charges. A lawyer for Mr. Sproul said at the time that the company had a system in place to prevent and detect fraud and forgery. Additional investigations of Mr. Sproul’s organization, including one by the Portland office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, also failed to produce any charges.” [New York Times, 10/5/12]

Officials at A Library in Pittsburgh Complained That Sproul’s Organization Got Permission After Using False Pretenses to Set Up a Voter Registration Desk Outside Their Building—Only After Visitors Complained Did They Learn That the Canvassers Represented the Republican Party.“Around the same time, officials at a library in Pittsburgh complained that Mr. Sproul’s company had used false pretenses — claiming to represent the nonpartisan America Votes — to get permission to set up a voter registration desk outside their building. It was only after visitors began to complain that the library learned that the canvassers represented the Republican Party.” [New York Times, 10/5/12]

Former Chairman of the Arizona Republican Party Said Nathan Sproul, Head of Lincoln Strategy Group, Was “Very Controversial” In Arizona Republican Circles. “Mike Hellon, a former chairman of the Arizona Republican Party, said that Mr. Sproul had been considered ”very controversial” in Arizona Republican circles before the recent allegations, partly because of past voter registration investigations. ”There are questions among a lot of people in the party about how he gets these contracts and why he gets contracts,” Mr. Hellon said.” [New York Times, 10/5/12]

Election Law Expert: If Sproul’s Firm Appears On Filings It “Would Immediately Raise Red Flags Among Democrats.” “But the record of allegations makes Sproul a lightning rod in political circles. “There’s no question if the name Sproul & Associates appeared on any filings, that would immediately raise red flags among Democrats,” said Rick Hasen, an election law expert who teaches at UC Irvine.” [LA Times, 9/28/12]

Leader of Protect America’s Consumers Was Once Spokesperson for Koch Brothers-Tied, and Scandal-Plagued Coal Industry Trade Association That Faked Grassroots Campaigns and Forged Letters to Congress

Protect America’s Consumers’ CEO Is Steve Gates, Who Worked with the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity When “It Was Caught Feigning a Grass-Roots Campaign, Including Sending Forged Letters to Congressional Offices.” “The only person who has been identified with the group, spokesman Steve Gates, worked for the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity while it was caught feigning a grass-roots campaign, including sending forged letters to congressional offices. Gates didn’t respond to requests for comment.” [Politico, 1/7/16]

The Forged Letters Were Supposedly Written On Behalf of Military Veterans and Local Chapters of Civil Rights Groups and Sent to Democratic Members of Congress in Opposition to The Waxman-Markey Energy Bill. “ACCCE is best known for its ties to Bonner & Associates, the lobbying firm that got caught sending forged letters to Democratic members of Congress this summer. The letters, putatively written on behalf of military veterans and local chapters of civil rights groups, opposed the Waxman-Markey energy bill. In late October, congressional investigators found that ACCCE knew that Bonner was sending out phony letters on its behalf, but waited to tip off lawmakers until after they’d voted on the bill.” [Mother Jones, 12/4/09]

The ACCCE “Subcontracted Its Astroturf Operations to Lincoln Strategy Group, A GOP-Tied Firm Notorious for Voter Fraud.” “The new project will use 225,000 volunteers dubbed “America’s Power Army.” They will visit town hall meetings, fairs and other functions attended by members of Congress and ask misleading questions about energy policy. Think Progress has discovered that ACCCE has subcontracted its astroturf operations to the Lincoln Strategy Group, a GOP-tied firm notorious for voter fraud. The LinkedIn profile for Lincoln Strategies staffer Courtney Forrester reveals that her employer is engaged in a massive effort to recruit supporters on behalf of the coal industry. Steve Gates, communications director for ACCCE, told Think Progress that Lincoln Strategy Group ran their grassroots campaign last year as well.” [Think Progress, 8/7/09]

Think Progress: Lincoln Strategies Is “One of Most Notorious Voter Fraud Organizations in The Country.” “The new firm managing the “grassroots” campaign for the coal industry has a history that distinguishes it as being one of the most notorious voter fraud organizations in the country:” [Think Progress, 8/7/09]

Executives with Two Member Companies of the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity Attended A “Secretive Gathering Held by The Koch Brothers” To Discuss 2010 Election Strategy. “With no end in sight to such dramatic spending in order to protect polluters’ profits, a new Think Progress exposé published yesterday suggests that the level of coordination between secret money political groups, ultra-rich conservative donors, and polluters may be even deeper than previously thought. Think Progress obtained a memo detailing a secretive gathering held by the Koch brothers this past June, at which the Koch brothers plotted their 2010 election strategy with 210 attendees from the oil industry, coal companies, health insurers, banks, right-wing media (including Glenn Beck), the U.S. Chamber, and others. The June meeting was merely the latest in a series of similar gatherings held twice annually by the Kochs in order to coordinate the funding of the conservative infrastructure of front groups, political campaigns, think tanks, media outlets and other anti-government efforts. The list of attendees obtained by Think Progress shows that there is considerable overlap between the groups that have been running tens of millions in anti-clean energy ads and those who attended the Koch confab, including:…American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity: The well-known and scandal-plagued coal industry front group has spent over $16 million on energy ads this year. Executives from two of its member companies—Alpha Coal Sales Company (a subsidiary of Alpha Natural Resources) and Alliance Resource Partners were in attendance at the gathering.” [Think Progress, 10/21/10]

In 2014, Gates Ran for School Board in Nebraska. The Omaha World-Herald Profiled His Race: “Steve Gates said he and his family have chosen Elkhorn and the Elkhorn district for the past decade, a time when they could have settled anywhere in the country. Gates moved to the area 10 years ago to take a job at Union Pacific Railroad after several years on Capitol Hill as a press secretary. After a year with the railroad he took over as spokesman for a trade association and commuted to Washington, D.C., for eight years. Now back in the metropolitan area full time and running his own communications company, he said he can make a difference. As a communications professional, he could help make sure that people’s voices are being heard internally and externally. When Elkhorn High School had to close recently because of a power outage, he didn’t hear about it. There’s an opportunity to build a more cohesive school district and communicate more effectively, he said. As a parent who drops off children at three schools, he’s concerned about what he sees as a lack of supervision in front of schools during drop-off. Gates also blogs about area dive bars. He said he started the venture for fun, but through it he has met friends and raised thousands of dollars for local families through events such as an upcoming haunted bar tour, which will benefit the Siena-Francis House. [Omaha World-Herald, 10/20/14]

The Renovation for The CFPB Will Cost Taxpayers “Precisely Zero” Since Its Paid for by The Federal Reserve Which “Is Self-Financed, Largely with Income On Securities Such as Government Bonds.” “Republicans have cast the project as a misuse of public dollars in a time of tight budgets. “The CFPB is funded by the Federal Reserve, which happens to be taxpayer money,” Hensarling said in a February speech that denounced the renovation. But the Federal Reserve is self-financed, largely with income on securities such as government bonds, so the amount Congress needs to set aside for the office redo is precisely zero.” [Bloomberg, 7/10/14]

REALITY: Protect America’s Consumers Wildly Overestimates the Cost of the Renovation, Which Is in Line with Other Government Renovation Projects

Bloomberg: The GOP Estimated That The CFPB Headquarters Renovation Would Cost $216 Million but “Their Numbers Don’t Add Up.” “The GOP members say their calculations show the renovation will cost $215.8 million, or $590 per square foot—more than double the CFPB estimate, and more than it cost per square foot to construct the lavish Bellagio Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. These figures were picked up by newspapers and conservative websites, which ran them under headlines like “Elizabeth Warren’s Brainchild Builds HQ Costlier Than Trump Tower.” There’s just one hitch: Their numbers don’t add up.” [Bloomberg, 7/10/14]

The Inspector General of the Federal Reserve Estimated the Cost of the Renovations at $145.1 Million. “At McHenry’s request, the inspector general of the Federal Reserve, the CFPB’s parent agency, prepared a report in June examining the project’s price tag. It said the job would cost an estimated $145.1 million for construction, construction management, and GSA fees. The report said the renovation covers 512,000 sq. ft., bringing the estimate to $283 per square foot. The renovation has since been scaled back to 503,000 sq. ft.” [Bloomberg, 7/10/14]

The GSA Has Said the Costs Are in Line with Other Government Renovation Projects and The CFPB Followed Proper Contracting Procedures. “The GSA has said the costs are in line with other government renovation projects, and the inspector general concluded the CFPB followed proper contracting procedures.” [Bloomberg, 7/10/14]

RHETORIC: The CFPB set their own salaries making themselves the most lavishly paid in all of federal government. [ProtectConsumers.com, Accessed 3/1/16]

REALITY: The CFPB Compensates Employees in Line with Federal Reserve Employees, As Required by Law

The CFPB Is Required by Law to Compensate Employees in Line with The Federal Reserve Board’s Average Salary for Employees with Similar Skills and Experience. “The CFPB responded to the revelations by noting the Dodd-Frank bill, which created the agency itself in 2011, requires that compensation be comparable to Federal Reserve employees. “CFPB’s pay design and pay setting methodology places our employees in line with the Federal Reserve Board’s average salary for employees with similar skills and experience,” spokeswoman Michelle Person told The Daily Caller.” [Daily Caller, 7/18/13]

Consumer Protection Expert: “I Have No Quarrel Whatsoever with The CFPB’s Salary Structure…They Need to Pay the Salaries They Do in Order to Attract Top-Notch Talent.” “Consumer protection expert Alan Kaplinsky told TheDC the high compensation of CFPB employees is nothing unusual. “I have no quarrel whatsoever with the CFPB’s salary structure,” said Kaplinsky, chair of the Consumer Financial Services Group. “They need to pay the salaries they do in order to attract top-notch talent.” [Daily Caller, 7/18/13]

REALITY: CFPB Employee Salaries Are In-Line with Other Federal Banking Regulators, And Far Less Than The FDIC

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